Prioritise your board game concepts *Board Game Design*

[@Gmanrocky]

Criminally underrated. This is a really inspiring video

[@Mambaru]

I am my own worst critic when it comes to design. I have a habit of abandoning a design when I view it as an outside, person. Looking forward to this video.

[@Grayson.P]

I've had some thoughts on games before, but the development has never gone too far. I had recent thoughts for another game, and finding this channel is helping out and encouraging the process to actually get more done with it.

[@HeathcliffeMcHarris]

seeing your videos is reminding me to be excited about the board and pieces in my closet awaiting a proper ruleset, thanks. also had a fresh idea about which direction to go in while watching!

[@therealBocaStudios]

So the thing about chess is this. It’s a pattern recognition and memory game at its core. When studying chess moves for instance, when an opponent begins to move their pieces into place, I must be able to recall the set of moves they are about to embark upon and counteract this with first a neutralizing move but then an offensive move. The depth of chess comes not from the pieces but from the relationship with the opponent. If I let on too soon that I know what they are doing they may be able to draw me into a trap. Chess is unique in that it ranks players and you only score points by beating players that are equal or greater ranked then you. You can actually loose points in ranking for beating a play who is too low in the ranking system. Onitama plays off of this in the way each card predicts a pre set of movements therefore mitigating the need to have moves memorized. In essence Onitama lowers the barriers to entry.

[@khiarastales2091]

Another enlightening video from you! I think this concept of prioritizing, well, concepts, could be applicable too for video game development, and could help fellow gamedevs. Thank you!

[@AdaminWales]

Thanks for watching :) Yes, I agree it would be useful for pretty much any creative pursuit really!

[@sirguy6678]

Fantastic video! This video really sums up your thoughts and energy as a game designer towards your games- using these systems you can simultaneously create your sell sheets

[@pikapomelo]

The wrestling game seems neat!

[@thedspenguin]

R is for really check for typos 😛😇 great video and resource as always, Adam

[@AdaminWales]

Oh no! Now I’ll have to search through the whole video looking for the typos!!! Or you could just tell me! :)

[@thedspenguin]

@@AdaminWales I could give you a hint and say someone else has already made a comment joking about it 😜 but all right, I'll reveal it... you wrote "R is for revelant" 😁

[@AdaminWales]

Oh no!!! That’s far worse than I expected!!! 😭😭😭

[@thedspenguin]

@@AdaminWales hehe happens to the best

[@glowtort8442]

Just found your channel-exactly what I’ve been looking for. Keep it up!!!

[@JustinNichols66]

Thanks for the video and sharing your process. Been pitching my first board game and juggling which idea to tackle next. Great list of questions to consider early on. I could see the dexterity wrestling game potentially being a good fit in Allplay's kabuto sumo brand. Might be worth pitching to them. I'd play!

[@AdaminWales]

Thanks Justin for watching. Glad it was helpful. I won’t pitch my wrestling game unless I can make it work! But you never know :)

[@CactusJackter]

Tangentially connected to the point of the video - All Star Wrestling is the clear leader of wrestling-based games at the moment.

[@AdaminWales]

I guess you mean “All Time Wrestling”? I’d like to try this one. Another which seems popular at the moment is Rumble Slam. I still feel like we’re waiting for the *definitive* wrestling game though! (I don’t think my ‘wrestling discs’ is it…)

[@Hexaina667]

I have been trying to make an idea tor a tcg as i have scraped all the other ones i have come up with and put time into. I have come up with a concept before waching this video, and i might just keep it. :)

[@AdaminWales]

Good luck with it! :)

[@Hexaina667]

@@AdaminWales thanks :)

[@Julebstube]

This video is really revelant ;-)

[@AdaminWales]

Re-v-elant!?! Gutted I missed that 😢

[@linowirag8494]

I vaguely remember reading a thread on BGG from another designer who build a table/spread sheet to find out which project he should focus on. Can't find it anymore though. Does anyone else remember?

[@JonathonV]

Thanks for the video, Adam! I’m going to rank some of my prototypes using your system below. My current game design could easily turn into something publishable, but for the moment I’m just hoping to create something my friends enjoy, because I’m not sure I want to commit to the hassle of getting it published. I’m certainly not expecting it to become the next Azul or Catan, because it’s not designed for that wide of an appeal; it’s more intricate and complex, which are the games I and my friends want to play. I think my theme is fantastic but I’ll need better art to make that theme shine through. None of my former designs have generated this level of excitement for me. It does use a lot of mechanics found in other games, but I’ve never seen this blend of mechanics used together before. (D=4, A=4, R=2, E=5, Σ=15) When I lived in Norwich, I designed an engine builder over the weekend just so I could join the game design group hosted by the co-designer of Cryptid, but my game quickly spiralled out of control and didn’t work well at all. 😂 Nevertheless, the playtesters were kind, and it gave me the confidence to start my own game design group back home in Canada. (D=2, A=2, R=3, E=1, Σ=8) A few years ago I created a variant of Nine Men’s Morris where on your turn you slide a meeple along the vertices of a connected hexagram, and each vertex had its own corresponding action. I’ve never seen a modern game do that, so I think the idea is unique, but maybe it’s unique because it doesn’t work: it either seems too easy to get where you want to go or too hard, depending on how many meeples you have blocking the various spaces. The game also suffers from being a bit dry and not particularly exciting to play. I think if I did get it to work, though, a lot of light gamers would really enjoy it. So, I’d classify the idea as having potential, but it’s on the back-burner for the moment. (D=5, A=2, R=4, E=1, Σ=12) I designed a game that used a deck of playing cards to let you collect resources, which you kept track of on a Dice-Forge-like player board. Once you had the resources, you could spend them to complete a small milestone, or try to save up more resources and complete a large milestone. The catch is that every milestone you complete-large or small-gives resources to both your neighbours, so you have to decide if it’s worth saving up for the big milestones (so you don’t give your opponents as much stuff), or to try to fulfil the easier milestones (so you get the points before the deck of cards runs out). My playtesters loved the game, but I thought it was too simple and random. I thought the decisions around positive interaction were interesting, though. (D=3, A=3, R=2, E=1, Σ=9)

[@AdaminWales]

Awesome! I’m really glad to see examples using the DARE system. I hope it helped clarify some thoughts in your head, and prioritise your designs. Good luck with it!

[@JonathonV]

@@AdaminWalesThanks! I kinda already knew which design to prioritise, but it’s nice to reflect on the projects you’re working on to see if they’re worth continuing, or to remind yourself of the purpose of creating your game when you’re pretty far into the design process!

[@crucial800]

I just spotted that Asterix & Obelix game! My wife is French and has familiarized me with them and i love it! I had no idea there was a game, is it fun?

[@AdaminWales]

I have two Asterix games - I reviewed them both here :) Caesar’s Empire & The Big Adventure: Asterix & Obelix The Board Game(s) Review kzbin.info/www/bejne/bHbXpZ2wer52arc

[@High-Tech-Geek]

Hi Adam! I just found your channel today! I love your enthusiasm! I made a boardgame when I was a kid in the 80s. It takes players through an ancient historical adventure in Egypt and the board is a map of Egypt, but it relies on rolling dice to progress and card decks to impose penalties and rewards. There are a few times players can make a choice, and the opening first quarter section of the game has an interesting chase/escape feature, but it's all mostly luck based with little player agency or strategy. Part of the fun is learning the story and the history, but I'd like to redo it using more modern mechanics. Can you give me some examples of modern games that take players through an event or adventure or story that I could study for better game mechanics? Or can you recommend a list of better modern strategic mechanics for that type of game concept?

[@aaronsbarrels]

I'm concerned that any game that is slightly "chess like" could just be considered a chess variant. I doubt a professional chess player will bother with anything but chess. It seems the word chess just turns people away. I think in a wrestling game the showmanship should be more important than winning the match. I think wrestling is making a comeback.